UPDATES
August 11, 2009
Roxanne Walker recently contacted West Michigan Trails & Greenways Coalition to see if there might be a trails project she could undertake as a volunteer. WMTGC furnished seeds and treats. Here is a summary of Roxanne's Girl Scout project:
On Sunday, Aug. 2, 2009, Roxanne called together a troop of Girl Scouts to cut brush, pick up garbage, and plant flowers along the south end of the White Pine Trail. If you've ever tried to organize, say, a family reunion, you might know how hard it can be to get everybody together during the summer months -so, the gathering of Troop #2158 turned into more of a medley of people. Still, they worked the trail and had a blast together.
Marilyn Wilson is a co-leader of Troop #2158; she and her daughter, Paige, forged the trail with Roxanne, along with Roxanne's mother, Anne Walker, and boyfriend, Alex Holtzman.
Although that section of trail is established and paved, Paige is a real pioneer for spending her afternoon learning new ways to serve her community. Recently bridged to Cadets, Paige and her Girl Scout troop are required to do several hours of volunteer work for every badge they complete.
Along their way, the group taught each other about the various plants along the trail, and the flowers they planted. Be sure to keep an eye out for coreopsis, gladiolas, columbines, bee balm, and other beautiful perennials that were planted between West River Center Drive and Abrigador Trail.
Paige and Marilyn left the day eager to share what they had learned with the rest of Troop #2158, which is part of the Flat River Service Unit. Along with their passion, they also brought back WMTGC t-shirts and wristbands for the rest of the troop - although the other girls will not actually receive them until they earn them on the trail. Marilyn is also hoping to work on trails around Lowell, perhaps aiding the Rails to Trails initiative.
"I liked it," Paige said, grinning over her double-scoop mint chocolate chip ice cream, courtesy of WMTGC for her hard work. Everybody agreed.
Roxanne Walker attends Kalamazoo College and is getting ready to start her junior year, most of which will be spent studying in Quito, Ecuador. Her areas of study are chemistry, applied mathematics, Spanish, and physics. She is participating in Michigan Service Scholars, an AmeriCorps program through which she will receive an educational scholarship for the completion of 300 hours of community service in a calendar year. She tells us her work with WMTGC has been an enjoyable part of this program.
We are delighted to have had Roxanne volunteer with us. We wish her well on her study program in Ecuador, and look forward to working with her again next summer.
Letter to the editor, published in Muskegon Chronicle, Feb. 15, 2010
Bike trails enhance adjoining property
For 80 years, John Triick’s farm has existed in Wright Township, and now the family is concerned about the bicycle trail that will run through his farm. The trail will not run through his farm, it will be using property that does not belong to the farm owners.
The bike path in question is the connecting link of the Musketawa from 8th Avenue to Kent County, and the information presented in the Jan. 26 story in The Muskegon Chronicle seems to state that the trail will be through his farm.
To set the story straight, the bike trail will be on the current Coopersville and Marne Railroad property, which is the original route of the railroad from Grand Rapids to Grand Haven. That rail line was established and began use in 1858. It consists of 100-foot right of way that has been there over 150 years. The Triick family forefathers purchased the adjoining land for their farm on both side of the railroad when the trains had already been running for years with big, noisy, fast-moving, scary steam engines. The spur to Muskegon, also a 100-foot right of way established in the 1800s and the site of the purposed bike trail from 8th Avenue to the Coopersville and Marne property, also predates the Triick farmland purchase.
It is also a fact that bicycle traffic has no harmful effect on adjoining property as the hundreds of trails throughout Michigan and other states can attest. Wisconsin, the first state to have bike trails on old rail lines, is still known for its happy cows as the trails pass through countryside, forests, farmlands and cities alike.
The connection of this trail will help join a trail from Hart, to Muskegon, to Grand Rapids, to Cadillac. This approximately 250-mile trail, mostly completed and under various names such as the Hart-Montague Trail, the Muskegon Lakeshore Trail, the Muskegon Laketon Trail, the Musketawa Trail, and the White Pine Trail, also passes through various countryside without disturbing adjacent animal life. When you use these trails, it is amazing the amount of wildlife that appears on them with no fear.
Please understand that these trails have no adverse effect on adjoining property except to increase its value, and they are maintained for cleanliness by the users.
Michiganians and folks from other states look forward to using these trails as a form of recreation and exercise. Why not join us?
Tom Anderson
North Muskegon
A board member and conductor of the Coopersville and Marne Railway.
A board member of the West Michigan Trails and Greenways Coalition, an organization that works for the completion of trails and trail connections with the many donated dollars it has obtained from the West Michigan area.
Both are volunteer positions supporting our great state.